Recapping the January transfer window for Bayern Munich

Slam! The transfer window is shut, and Bayern Munich were able to sneak in one more deal before the 18:00 CET deadline. A quiet January crescendoed into a last-minute signing due to significant squad injuries.

Bayern's transfer window was not just about the last hours of it. After all, they found a new manager, cut some uninvolved squad players, and found destinations for two of their young players. Here is a recap of Bayern's January transfer window:

Arrivals

Serdar Tasci (€2.5 million Loan, Spartak Moscow)

Bayern needed to act quick near the deadline, and act quickly they did. The injuries to Jerome Boateng and Javi Martinez forced them to find a quick fix, and the loan of Tasci – one of the best defenders in the Russian Premier League – accomplished just that. Raised in the Stuttgart academy system, Tasci now returns to Germany as a squad piece. He falls in line with the type of defender Pep Guardiola likes to have on the field, one good with his feet who can help control possession. Tasci has an interesting six-month trial ahead of him, and Bayern can make the deal permanent if he passes.

Departures

Gianluca Gaudino (Loan, FC St. Gallen)

Maurizio Gaudino is not fooling around when it comes to his son. Gianluca's father and agent wanted to get the 19-year-old midfielder out of the Regionalliga as fast as possible, and found a suitor in Switzerland. The problem with Gaudino's move to FC St. Gallen? The coach is Josef Zinnbauer, the same man who stalled Julian Green's development a year ago at Hamburger SV.

Jan Kirchhoff (€1 million, Sunderland)

Signing a three-year deal with Bayern as an up-and-coming defender may not have been the best move for Kirchhoff. After two-and-a-half seasons – one-and-a-half of which he spent on loan – he moves to a relegation-threatened Sunderland team desperate for defensive help. The 25-year-old center back is young enough to still make an impact, but he will have to remain healthy to do so.

Sinan Kurt (€500,000, Hertha Berlin)

Kurt thought moving from Borussia Mönchengladbach to Bayern would be a nice upgrade for his career. However, the 19-year-old has not panned out to be the Marco Reus he was touted to be, and even was losing his grasp on a spot with the Bayern reserves. Kurt therefore elected to follow in the footsteps of Mitchell Weiser, who has used his move to the German capital to kickstart his career.

Missed Targets

Bayern don't usually have a lot of targets in Germany, but extenuating circumstances forced them to collect a few. One reportedly was Kevin Wimmer from Tottenham, but with the London club having defensive depth issues of their own, Spurs were not going to part with their summer signing. The other was Bologna's Amadou Diawara, a teenage defensive midfielder who reportedly had a €10 million price tag. Tasci was ultimately their best option, or at least the one they could secure before the deadline.

Top Bundesliga Transfers

Jonas Hofmann (€8 million from Borussia Dortmund to Borussia Mönchengladbach)

Returning from his loan from Mainz, Hofmann was tasked with winning Thomas Tuchel over after getting a decent look under Jürgen Klopp early in his career. Tuchel never seemed to favor Hofmann, who at times played on-loan Adnan Januzaj over him. Gladbach sporting director Max Eberl decided to swoop in for the 24-year-old winger, hoping he has enough undeveloped potential left in his young legs. Hofmann does not have a lot of time left to fulfill that latent potential though, and Gladbach are taking a decent risk bringing him on board.

Younes Belhanda (Loan, Dynamo Kiev to Schalke 04)

One of Morocco's better exports, Belhanda was starting to get buried on Dynamo Kiev's depth chart, only making 10 league appearances for the surprise Champions League participants. With league championships in France and Ukraine on his résumé, Belhanda jumped at the challenge to get Schalke back into the Champions league. Schalke may be in a struggle to convince Leroy Sané to stay in Gelsenkirchen, so Belhanda is a move that could help the Royal Blues now and in the not-so-distant future.

Papy Djilobodji (Loan from Chelsea to Werder Bremen)

Werder Bremen were a busy club in January, adding five players to their team (two more in the summer). The most significant of which is Djilobodji, who jumped right in to help Bremen secure four points in their first two matches of 2016. Barely getting a sniff at Chelsea, Djilobodji could be a crucial figure at Bremen, pairing with Jannick Vestegaard to help them survive yet another drop.

Josip Drmic (Loan, Borussia Mönchengladbach to Hamburger SV)

Drmic's tour around Germany continues as he moves to his fourth club in three seasons. Gladbach brought him in during the summer hoping he could replicate his Nurnberg success to help fill the void Max Kruse left behind. He never found his form, and never got a chance to once André Schubert took the helm. Heavily reliant on Pierre-Michel Lasogga, Hamburg could use a player like Drmic, but Drmic has a little more pressure on him to impress.

Artem Kravets (Loan, Dynamo Kiev to VfB Stuttgart)

This move will likely fly under the radar considering his footballing origins in Ukraine and the departed luster of Stuttgart. Kravets is a player with Champions League experience who is moving to a side relying on Timo Werner to lead the line. He scored the winning goal against Hamburg over the weekend, giving Stuttgart three straight wins in the Bundesliga, and he might have a similar impact Daniel Ginczek had in Stuttgart's relegation fight last season.